Post type yieldable barrier



Nov. 25,1941. E. D. SAWYER POST TYPE YIELDABLE BARRIER Filed April 41938 3 Shee s-Sheet l r f M SM f w 2 H y m L N\h M N 7 PM v .m N \Zn IR-K N\ a NM NR\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\Rm\ r wy ,m w

Nov. 25, 1941. E. D. SAWYER POST TYPE YIELDABLE BARRIER Fil ed April 4,1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 witnesses I Nov. 25, 1941. E. D. SAWYER PQST TYPEYIELDABLE BARRIER Filed April 4, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 u- Zvmswfor il lllll IWHH MIME '5 z 1w W '&

Patented Nov. 25, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE) POST TYPE YIELDABLEBARRIER Emerson D. Sawyer, Chicago, Ill.

Application April 4, 1938, Serial No. 199,933

3 Claims.

My invention relates to certain novel improvements in yieldablebarriers, and has for its principal object the provision of an improvedconstruction of this character, which can be used efliciently on smallintermittently operated movable bridges, street ends. ferries, androadway approaches to dock fronts, as well as being used for yieldableguard rails on roadway curves or points of danger on roadways at highembankments.

The present invention relates especially to that type of yieldable andvflexible barrier, in which the yielding net or obstruction member iseither swung across the roadway, pulled across manually, or strung alongthe side of the roadway and kept in a taut horizontal position by meansof intermediate supporting posts fitted with stapled loops through whichthe flexible barrier strands can render.

Another object of this invention is the provision of an efficient meansof stopping cars, buses and trucks at places of danger without having toinstall more expensive types of yieldable barriers which utilize motivepower for bringing the barrier net, or flexible retardation member, intoan operative position across or alongside the roadway. Yieldablebarriers using motive power for bringing the barrier net from above theroadway to an operative position across the roadway, have beenconstructed on a fairly large number of bridges in the past few years,and have afforded efficient protection on these bridgesybut the presentinvention will afford a means for resistively stopping traiiic fromrunning wild on smaller and less frequently operated bridges, as

well as preventing traflic from hurdling or smashing through the guardrail at the side of the road.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

The invention consists inthe combination and arrangement of partshereinafter described and claimed.

The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanyingdrawings forming a part of this specification, and in which,

Figure 1 is a general View of the yieldable barrier device showing theposts with the net stretched therebetween.

Fig. 2 is a general View showing the posts of the barrier device withthe flexible net mounted on and supported by semi-rigid breakableswinging members and having the net secured together near the center ofthe roadway with a pair hand tightening hooks.

Fig. 3 is a view taken on they line AA of 2 showing how the semi-rigidframe supporting the net can be swung through an angle of degrees whenthe hand tightening hooks are disconnected.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line BB of Fig. 2 showing the cables ofthenet clamped to and supported by the semi-rigid frames.

Fig. 5 is asection taken on the line 0-0 of Fig. 2 showing the spreaderstrips. as connected to the horizontal cables of the net.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail of atypical top hinge for the swingingsemi-rigid gate shown in Fig. 2.

Fig. '7 is a plan view showing the edge of the roadway slab at a curvein the roadway with thefiexible yieldable barrier strung along theshoulder of the curve of the roadway with assumed successive positionsof an automobile at the time it leaves the roadway slab and crashesthrough the guard rail cables, and then is stopped by the cables in anextended position.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged elevational view taken on about the line D-D ofFig. 7 showing the extensible end of the yieldable barrier road guard.

Fig. 9 is a typical side view of one of the intermediatesupporting-posts of the road guard shown in Fig. 7 and illustrates therenderable method of supporting the horizontal strand of the road guard.

Fig. 19. is a face view of the yieldable barrier post which contains thepayout members and the braking devices.

Fig. 11 is a side view of the same post shown in Fig. 10. i

Fig. 12 is a partial top view of the post shown in Fig. 11 and is takenon. the line E-E with the ca removed, but in this Fig. 12 only thoseparts are shown that are sufficient to illustrate and describe themechanism that cannot be brought out fully in Figs. 10 and 11.

Fig. 13 is a view taken from the back of the post on about the line FFof Fig. 11 showing the pivotal method of mounting the hand crankretrieving mechanism.

Fig. 14 is a view taken on about the line G-G of Fig. 11 showing thebrake tightening lever locking device not shown on Fig. 11 for thepurpose of clarity.

Fig. 15 is a view showing the top of the lock shown in Fig. 14 and takenon the line H-H.

The. general objective in the construction of roadway gates or guardrails is primarily to provide safety, and in order to be a saferesistive device constructions of this nature must yield in order toavoid stopping the vehicle so abruptly as to telescope the car andseverely injure the occupants. Safety devices depending primarily uponthe yielding qualities of either tension or compression springsinvariably have a detrimental recoil or kick-back, and when this lattertype of device is struck a really substantial blow, these springs aregenerally stressed beyond their elastic limit causing a permanentdeformation of the spring and a detrimental sag of the flexible roadwaynet or longitudinal suspension members in the safety device.

To stop a moving vehicle gradually by means of a flexible safety devicerequires the application of negative resistance equal to the impactforce of the moving vehicle. The impact force of moving vehicles as wellas the opposing force required to stop those vehicles is computable infoot pounds of work done, hence it is readily seen that if the distancein which a vehicle is checked is measured in feet instead of inches, therestraining pull of the flexible part of the safety device will beproportionally smaller. The practical elongation or compression ofspring devices is generally limited to only a few inches, whereasfrictional retardation can be applied efficiently over distances of manyfeet.

By the application of this principle of snubbing action or frictionalretardation to yieldable roadway barriers or guard rails, more efficientoperation and less breakage can be obtained, thus affordinggreatersafety and more continued effectiveness. These are objects of thepresent invention.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, the numeral 1 indicates the postscontaining the braking or snubbing device and the numeral 2 indicatesthe longitudinal members of the net stretched between these posts I. Iprefer to show the net members 2 laced together with flexible verticalmembers 3 and flexible diagonal members 4. The engaging hooks 5, securedto the horizontal members 2 by means of the take-up members 6, engageloops 1 formed in payout members or sockets 8, which are in turn set inopenings in the faces of the posts I. Also in the type of constructionas shown in Fig. 1, I prefer to show the horizontal members 2 beingjoined near the center of the roadway by means of two interlocking loops9. The object of this construction is primarily for the purpose offolding the whole net back upon itself when it is desired to disconnectit by unhooking the hooks and placing the net alongside of the left handpost l clear of the roadway.

With the above general disposition of the parts named an effectiveyieldable barrier mechanism is obtained. In order to remove the barrierobstruction from the roadway it is necessary only to release the take-upmembers 6, disengage the hooks Sand pull the net to one side of theroadway, and in order to effectively barricade the roadway it is onlynecessary to pull the net across the road, engage the hooks 5 in theloops 1, and tighten up the strands of the net by means of the take-upmembers 6. Of course the use of loops l0 engaging the socket loops I atone end of the net is an optional construction in place of using hookson both ends of the net. In Fig. 2 an alternate means of placing theflexible net athwart the roadway is shown, and

wardly from the posts I consist of the same horizontal members 2,verticals 3a and diagonals 4, and the longitudinal members 2 are securedswingably in the loops 1 formed in the pay-out members 8. With theconstruction as shown in Fig. 2 it is advantageous to maintain thelongitudinal net members 2 in a slightly arched curve equivalent to thesame radius of curvature as the crown of the roadway, so as to make itpossible for a car to engage the net at the same height whether thevehicle strikes near the center of the road or at the side of the road.Also with this construction as shown in Fig. 2 I prefer to show themembers 3a of the net as being formed of a bendable though semi-rigidmetallic strip, as with this construction the net does not have to berolled or pulled across the roadway and is at all times supported by theswinging gate members. Thisis best shown in Fig. 5.

The swinging gate members which support the net in its arched positionconsist of horizontal members ll, vertical members l2, and diagonalmembers l3. These members ll, [2 and I3 are bolted together so as toform a structurally selfsustaining frame as shown in Fig. 4 and arejoined pivotally to the posts I by means of a hinge arrangementconsisting of end pieces [4, tongues l5 and I511, pins l6 and hingesockets H. These hinge sockets I! are secured to the posts I so as tohave the pin I6 fall directly above the openings in loops 1, the objectof this being to have the flexible net and the semi-rigid frameworkswing on the same center.

The normal operation of a flexible yieldable barrier gate such as shownin Fig. 2 would be as follows: swing the gate frames from their openposition alongside of the curbs, as indicated is possible in Fig. 3, toa position directly across the roadway between the posts I, engage thehooks 5 in the loops l8, and then tighten these engaging hooks 5 intheir loops l8 by means of take-up 6.

Should this whole gate arrangement as shown in Fig. 2 be struck by a cartraveling only at a low speed, the strength of the cable net and theretardation pull on the sockets 8 from within the posts l would besuflicient to overcome the impact of the car with the flexible net beingextended only a short distance, presumably less than 12 or 18 inches. Inthis case the horizontal strands and the diagonal strands of the netcould render through the loops 20, as best shown in Fig. 4, without anymaterial damage to the framework of the semi-rigid gate supportconsisting of members H, l2 and I3. But should a car strike this gatewith its attached net at a relatively high speed, then my constructionaffords a means of permitting the rigid sustaining gate structure tofollow along with the flexible net. As shown in Fig. 3 the gate wheninoperative is swung in the direction indicated by y, and when thevehicle strikes the net the supporting frame tends to turn in thedirection indicated by the arrow 3: of Fig. 3. Yet after the fairly highspeed vehicle has deflected the net in an appreciable distance asindicated at a: of Fig. 3, then the hinge connections consisting ofmembers l4, l5, I5a, l6 and I! are so constructed that the semi-rigidframe can separate and allow the whole structure of the semi-rigid gateto follow along with the flexible net as it is pushed into a fairly wellextended position. The payout members which restrain the pull on sockets8 will be described hereinafter. In the hinge construction, best shownin Fig. 6, I provide a shear-off key l9. This is provided for the twotop hinges only and is of sufiicient strength only to resist the staticload of the gate frame and net in its normal position, but will readilyshear off at a very small percentage of the pullt'that can be exerted onthe payout members which resist the pulling out of sockets 8. It is notnecessary of course to provide the tongues I of the lower hinges withsimilar shear-off pins.

After the car has been stopped the roadway can again be opened totraffic by swinging the framework and the net to the sides of theroadway, thereby allowing trafiic to proceed. And thereafter the tonguesI5 can be socketed in the frames I4 and new pins I9 installed in theupper hinges. This is nothing but a manual simplified repair operation.The recoiling of the payout members attached to the sockets 8 will bedescribed hereinafter.

Now referring to Fig. 7, the curved line 20 which terminates in twotangential extremities indicates the edge of a roadway slab on which car2I ismoving. For illustration: it is assumed that the car 2|. afterhaving reached the position 2Ia with its right hand front wheel off theedge of the roadway slab becomes unmanageable and strikes one of theguard rail intermediate posts, such as in position 2Ib, and then aftershearing off that post and possibly an adjacent post extends thehorizontal members 22 of the guard rail to position 22a, but in so doingit is brought to a stop as indicated at 2Ic.

This extensible provision is best illustrated in Fig. 8, in whichnumeral I indicates a yieldable barrier post similar to that describedabove and as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Numeral 23 indicates an extra heavycorner post on which cable slide sockets'24 are secured. These slidesockets 24 permit the cables 22 to slip through them fairly readily.Similar staple sockets 25 are fitted on the intermediate posts 26 of theguard rail, as best shown in Fig. 9, and these sockets 25 also permitthe horizontal tension members 22 to slide there-through. At the end ofthe guard rail I prefer to show an extra heavy post 21, in which the twohorizontal members 22 are secured, although it is entirely possible tohave an extra heavy post, suchas 23, as well as another post I withsnubbing mechanism in place of the fixed post 21. At intervals along thehorizontal members 22 I show vertical spacing members 28 of the sametype as members 3a of Fig. 2 and mounted on the horizontal members 22 sothat theycan be rendered along the horizontal strands 22, yet normallyserving as a semi-flexible tie so as to keep the members 22 at an equaldistance from each other;

Again referring to Fig. 8, I provide a rigid and sturdy metallic spacer29 attached at the ends of the horizontal members 22 and so secured thatin case the members 22 are pulled horizontally due to a deflection suchas at 22w the member 29 will engage the sockets 24 on the large post 23in order to limit the slippage of the horizontal members 22 and torestrain them from being extended any further. Of course when suchmovement of the rigid spacer 29 occurs horizontal members 31!, which aresecured substantially to horizontal members 22 by fastenings 3|, mustalso be pulled horizontally, and this in turn pulls the payout sockets 8out of the main post I against a payout resistance as hereinafterdescribed. Diagonal members 32 are provided in order that should themain portion of the load due to the impact of the car 2| fall on eitherthe upper or lower strand of horizontal members 22, then both thesockets8 of post I will be pulled out from the post I practically uniformly,as, described hereinafter in the specification.

I have preferred to show the post I when used in connection with aguardrail construction to be located well off the slab of the roadway,such as is brought out in Fig. '7. The object of this semi-remotelocation, together with a concrete protection as indicated by numeral 33is for the purpose of not endangering this post I on account of directimpact from a car, and further to enable a single man to effectivelyreplace the guard rail in its substantially correct position after thecar 2I of Fig. '7 has been pulled back onto the: roadway. My improvedconstruction permits of such simple replaceal. This is accomplished' bywinding the payout cables attached to sockets 8 back into the post I,and the cables 22, which are the longitudinal tension members of theguard rail, are pulled back. along the faces of the posts 26 and thepost 23 through the sockets 25. and 24. Due to the method of fasteningmembers 28 onto horizontals 22, these members 28 in case they aredisplaced can be slid along the cables 22 for realignment.

In this illustrated construction calling for a novel, flexible,yieldable, resistive guard rail, I prefer to place the vertical memberor spacer 29 at such a distance from the main corner post 23 so that themember 29 will contact the sockets 24 before the full payout length ofthe cables wound on the brake drums within post I and attached tosockets 8 shall have been fully unwound from their respective drums, aswill be described hereinafter. This novel arrangement will permit of thebraking apparatus within the post I functioning to its full efliciencyand then permit the full pull in addition to this payout resistance tofall on the large post 23.

Now' referring more particularly to Figs. 10, ll, 12, 13, 14 and 15,which show the mechanism preferably contained in the main barrier posts,consisting chiefly of the payout members, the storage drums, the brakingmechanism, and the retrieving mechanism. The numeral 34 indicates amachinery housing which forms a virtual inner shell for the post I andis so constructed as to be made removable from the post I for the objectof maintenance renewals, although at the same time the various pieces ofmachinery could just'as well be mounted directly in the shell of thepost I. The tie plates 35 and 36 are shown removable so as to allow theinner housing 34 to be taken directly out of the top of the post I afterthe cap 31 has been removed. The sockets 8 are provided with taperedbases which are seated in correspondingly tapered openings in the fairleader chocks 38. The payout cables 39 and 33a being secured in thesockets 8 pass tautly back into the post I, or within the housing 34,onto the storage drums 4B and 4| and whereby all slack is eliminatedfrom the payout cables and the barrier sockets fl definitely positionedand supported. These payout members 39 and 39a in being coiled on theirrelative storage drums 40 and M, coil upon themselves spirally andterminate in tapered sockets 42 and 43, the socket 42 being in storagedrum 4!) and the socket 43 being in storage drum 4I. The payout cable39a before passing onto its storage drum 4I passes around a fair leadersheave 44 mounted to turn on a shaft 45. A guard 43 is provided toinsure that cable 39a cannot leave the groove of sheave 44.

The coiling of the two payout cables 33 and 39a" on their respectivestorage drums 49 and 4| spirally affords a compact means for storage ofthe payout length, and at the same time increases the efiiciency of thebraking apparatus the farther the payout members 39 and 39a areuncoiled. The storage drums 40 and 4| are cast as a unit preferably formechanical simplicity and for the same reason are cast in conjunctionwith the brake Wheel 41. This casting which forms the members 40, 4| and41 is preferably shown mounted on a shaft 48 and keyed thereto by meansof a key 49. The shaft 48 in turn is mounted pivotally in bushings 50which are secured preferably in the housing 34. The assembly of theshaft 48 through the casting forming drums 46 and 4| and brake wheel 41is accomplished by means of the nonrotating bushing 5|, which whenremoved affords a means of entering the shaft 48 through the drumcasting and also the placing of the key 49. After this the nonrotatingbushing 5! is placed securely in the side of the housing 34. Of coursethis assembly would be accomplished with the preferred illustrateddesign before the housing 34 is placed in the post On the brake wheel 41is secured a noncorrosive brake ring 52, so fastened that it must at alltimes revolve as a unit with the brake wheel 41 and the secured drums 46and 4|. Enshrouding the brake ring 52 for the greater part of itscircumference is the brake band 53 with the brake lining 54. At the heelor heavy end of brake band 53 a pin 55 is mounted pivotally with itsouter ends pivotally mounted in side plates 56. mounted to swing on theanchor shaft 51 and this anchor shaft 51 is securely supported at eachendin the sides of housing 34 as shown in the preferable constructionbest illustrated in Fig. 10.

Side bars 58 are secured to the inner housing 34 for the purpose ofproviding sufficient bearing for the ends of both anchor shaft 51 andthe bushings which support rotatable shaft 48 as well as the ends offair leader shaft 45.

At the toe end, or the light end, of the brake band 53 is secured asocket end 59 with adjustable s'et screw 60. A pivotally mounted pin 6|passes through the socket end 59 and bears against the set screw 6|] andat each end of the pin 6| an opening through the two lever plates 56 areprovided so as to enable the pin 6| to transmit any movement of thelever plates 56 rotatively around the center of shaft 51 to the toe endof the brake band 53. At the same time that the pin 6| is moved aboutthe center of shaft 51, the pin 55 moves also. Now referringparticularly to Fig. 11 in case the pin 6| is moved upwardly, the pin 55is moved downwardly and inwardly thus affording a more snug fit of thebrake band 53 on the brake ring 52, and such a motion tends to bring thecenter line of pin 55 in a direct line between the center of the shaft51 and the contact point of the heel end of the brake band 53 with thebrake ring 52.

Any motion imparted to the lever plates 56 is through the medium. ofthrust bar 62 and hand lever 63. The object of the hand lever 63 is toeither set the brake 53 up tight or else release it completely fromcontact with the brake ring 52. The hand lever 63 when rotated about itsful crum pin 64, pivotally mounted in the support 65, to a position 63aforces the thrust bar 62 downwardly by means of the pivotal pinconnection 66. This thrust bar 62 is fitted with an adjustment nut 61and spring 68. This spring 68 These lever side plates 56 are in turnbears on a perforated pin' block 69. The two pin ears 19 of the pinblock 69 are pivotally mounted in the side plates 56. The lower end ofthe shank of thrust bar 62 passes through the perforated center of pinblock 69 as best shown in Fig. 10, and the protruding part of the shankof bar 62 is fitted with a cotter pin 1|. It is readily seen then thatthe movement of hand lever 63 to a position 6311 induces a tightening ofthe braking apparatus and vice versa, the movement of this hand leverfrom 63a to 63 releases the braking apparatus. The object of the spring68 and the adjustment 61 is to provide for the possibility of having afreezing action take place between the brake band 53, its lining 54 andthe brake ring 52.

This latter innovation is found to be necessary on this pertinent typeof device, in that the allowable maximum diameters possible for thebrake wheel within a compact housing such as one of these posts requireis limited, in order to satisfy the demand of economy and compactnessfor commercial purposes, and on account of the extreme radial pressuresexerted on the brake band surface in developing suflici'ent retardationto effectually overcome the impact load placed on the payout members 39and 390.. This whole novel construction is made to satisfy in a compactway an extreme and difficult function; in fact special alloy steels arenecessary in order to develop such a compact arrangement of partscapable of performing the difficult function requir'ed.

In order to increase the efficiency of hand lever 63 in producing atight contact of the braking surfaces, I provide an extensible member 12telescoping within the handle 63 and fitted with a jump-back spring 13.When the lever 63 has been forced down to the position 630. it isdesirable to lock it in this latter position. For this purpose I providelocking arrangement as shown in Fig. 14 consisting of a sliding latch 14mounted so as to slip along a shaft 15, which in turn is secured in thesides of housing 34, best shown in Fig. 12. The sliding latch 14 can belocked in place by means of the adjustable plunger 16.

From the foregoing description it can be seen that the resistive payoutof the members 39 and 39a can be retarded by an abnormally heavyfrictional force. But after these payout members have been run out andpartially uncoiled from their respective storage drums, then it isnecessary to rewind them to their normal position. Such a rewindingapparatus from a commercial point of view must be not only efiloient butmust be inseparable from the post so as to be available at all times andmust at the same time be housed appropriately within the shell of thepost.

In my present invention I provide all of these practical andcommercially acceptable features by means of the novel mechanismdescribed below.

Mounted on and secured to the drum casting is bevel gear 11 so locatedas to be engageable by bevel pinion 18. Bevel pinion 1B is secured tothe hand crank shaft 19 formed at its outer end so as to accommodate thehand handle 80. Shaft 19 is mounted so as to turn in swivel block 8|.This swivel block 8| has at its upper and lower ends pin ends 32 and82a, mounted so as to be revolvable in the lugs 83 and 83a, which inturn are secured to the housing 34 as best shown in Fig. 13. It will benoted that the center of rotation of the pins 82 and 82a does notcoincide with the center of rotation of bevel pinion shaft 19 at anypoint, the object of this being to permit a disengagement rotation ofthe bevel pinion 18 to a disengaged position 18a. When the pinion I8 isbeing rotated from its engaged to disengaged position with the bevelgear H, the judicious eccentricity of the rotation center of pins 82 and82a from the center of shaft 19 permits the gear teeth to clearthemselves as they are disengaged, and when these gear teeth are justdisengaged then the shaft 19 with its attached hand handle 88 is free torotate in the pin block 8|, the object of .this being to permit the handhandle 88 to drop down vertically, thus allowing this hand rewind deviceto be folded within the shell of the post I completely. A portion of theback of post i is notched out as at 84 so as to permit the hand crank 80to be swung in horizontally suificiently to disengage the two teeth ofthe bevel pinion and the bevel gear.

When the payout members, cables 39 and 39a, are to be recoiled on theirrespective drums, the teeth of bevel gear 11 and bevel pinion 18 mustremain in mesh, and to insure this I provide spring 85 fitted with keybar 86, which will engage the cross slot 81 in the top of pin 82, asbest shown in Fig. 13 and Fig. 12. Spring 85 is fitted with a hand orfinger hold 88 so that the key 86 can be disengaged from the slot 81when it is desired to disconnect the recoiling hand crank apparatus.

It will be noted that not only the novelty of mechanical parts requiredfor the commercial success of this whole mechanism have been devised,but the proper disposition of these parts and their orientation one withanother on the back face of the post so as to give the operator freemovement of both hands in working the brake releasing apparatus as wellas the retrieving or rewinding apparatus simultaneously in a slightlstopped position while he is enabled to look directly toward the roadwaybarrier net or along the line of the guard rail, is no small part,

of the novelty of this invention.

A hinged cover 89 is provided on the back of the post I which can belocked in its closed position at staple 90 so as to insure that none ofthe apparatus within the post can be tampered with.

The cross bar 9| at the top of the frame 34 provides stiffness for thisframe, yet at the same time permits access to the mechanism after thecover 31 has been removed. Anchors 92 serve as the means of anchoringthe post to its foundation.

As stated in the foregoing part of the specifications I prefer to showthe net of the barrier device as illustrated in Fig. 1 having diagonalmembers 4 similar to diagonal members 4 of Fig. 2 and diagonal members32 of Fig. 8. By referring to Fig. 11 it is seen that the object ofthese diagonals is to serve as a means for pulling both the payoutmember 39 and the payout member 39a ofi their respective drumssimultaneously, even though either one or the other of these payoutmembers is receiving the major portion of the tensile load due to theimpact of a car.

It is no doubt apparent by reference to the foregoing description andaccompanying drawings, that I accomplish many advantages over theconstruction of similar devices that are now commercially in use, and Ialso provide an arrangement and construction of parts which willwithstand the rough usage and extreme stresses expected of a device ofthis character, that the parts are housed symmetrically within rainproof and dirt proof protections where necessary, that the parts of thedevice necessary for successful functioning cannot be separated from themechanism but are at all times available for use, and that these variousparts can be manufactured at an economical cost.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred form ofconstruction for carrying my invention into effect, this is capable ofvariation and modification without departing from the spirit of theinvention. I, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precise detailof construction set forth, but desire to avail myself of such variationand modification as come within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention wh'at I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is:

1. A device of the class described comprising a support; a flexibleelement arranged to pay out from said support; braking means forretarding the paying out of said element; means for rendering saidbraking means operative or inoperative; means for retrieving saidflexible element; abevel gear for operating said retrieving means; acrank shaft foldable into and out of said support and carrying a bevelpinion normally out of engagement with said bevel gear but arranged toengage and operate said bevel gear when said crank shaft is folded outof said support; and means for utilizing the paying out of said flexibleelement in checking the motion of a vehicle.

2. A device of the class described comprising a support; a flexibleelement arrange to pay out from said support; braking means forretarding the paying out of said element; manually oper.. able meansmounted within and foldable into and out of said support for renderingsaid braking means operative or inoperative; manually operable meansmounted within and foldable into and out of said support for retrievingsaid flexible element; and means for utilizing the paying out of saidflexible element in checking the motion of a vehicle.

3. The device specified 'in claim 2 in which both the braking andretrieving means are provided with means for selectively locking them ineither their operative or inoperative positions.

EMERSON D. SAWYER,

